Inside the Phillies with MLB.com beat writer Todd Zolecki

Blanton to the DL

The Phillies have lost one of their five starting pitchers to an injury.

They placed Joe Blanton on the 15-day disabled list today with a medial impingement in his right elbow. The move is retroactive to April 24, which means Blanton can be activated no earlier than May 9. The severity of the injury is unknown. Phillies officials could not be reached for comment.

Right-hander Vance Worley will be recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley, and will pitch Friday against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. Blanton is 0-1 with a 5.92 ERA in four starts this season, although he had a 2.57 ERA in his last two starts. Worley is 2-2 with a 2.78 ERA in four starts this season with the IronPigs.

Carlos Ruiz left yesterday’s game in Arizona because of a back injury. Ruiz expressed his concern to reporters after the game, but he is not expected to land on the DL.

Even without Ruiz on the DL, the Phillies have quite a lengthy list of injured players: Chase Utley, Brad Lidge, Jose Contreras, J.C. Romero and Blanton.

who did this team piss off that we get these injuries every year? We know have 2 closers, a starter and our All Star 2B on the DL as well as our #1 prospect. Only good news is that its April and not October

There is no exact science when it comes to getting a guy with the body of a Defensive lineman to pitch at the major league level. We have all watched Blanton over the past few years. It seems to take him time to be comfortable in his own skin. He eventually gets into a groove every year. He’ll be OK as long as he can stay healthy for any length of time.

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